Acquisitions connect TKH to growth

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In 2019, TKH Group saw its turnover increase by 2 percent to 1,489.6 million euros. Acquisitions contributed 4 percent to the growth, which means that organically, there was a 2 percent decline. Net profit rose 5 percent to 113.9 million. TKH’s Building Solutions and Telecom Solutions branches performed better, Industrial Solutions did worse due to market conditions. The total number of employees dropped 8 percent to 5,980 FTEs at year-end 2019, mainly because of divestments.

The Building Solutions branch, consisting of the subsegments for vision & security systems and connectivity systems, saw its turnover rise by 6 percent to 745.0 million euros. With acquisitions contributing 8 percent to the growth, however, organic results declined by 3 percent. Telecom Solutions brought in 200.5 million from fiber network systems and indoor telecom & copper networks – a 3 percent year-over-year rise.

At the Industrial Solutions branch, which supplies production systems and connectivity systems, turnover amounted to 544.2 million euros, a 3 percent YOY decline. Within the subsegment of manufacturing systems, VMI reported stable sales for its tire building machines. There was reluctance among the top-five tire manufacturers due to negative developments in the automotive industry. Nevertheless, the order book was higher at year-end 2019 than a year earlier.

Credit: VMI

“The past year was a turbulent one, due to geopolitical and social developments, which resulted in a reluctance to invest in a number of market segments,” comments TKH CEO Alexander van der Lof. “Macroeconomic uncertainties have increased in recent months. So far, the impact of the coronavirus seems limited for TKH. This also applies to the nitrogen and PFAS crisis in the Netherlands and possible international trade barriers. It remains difficult to predict possible future consequences, but the group’s order book provides a strong basis for further value creation, as a result of which we’re well positioned for the medium term.”